Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Lowell, Padres, Sale, Buehrle
On this date last season, Randy Johnson threw six innings of one run ball to beat the Nationals and earn his 300th career victory. The Big Unit called it career in January with 303 career wins despite having just 64 on his 30th birthday. His 4,875 strikeouts are the second most all time, though his 10.61 career K/9 is the best mark in history.
The four year, $53.4MM deal the Diamondbacks gave Johnson prior to the 1999 season might be the greatest free agent signing of all time. All he gave them in return was 1030 innings, 81 wins, 1,417 strikeouts, four Cy Young Awards and a World Championship. I'd call that one a win.
Here are a few links from around the world wide netweb…
- The Bottom Line wonders if Ken Griffey Jr.'s retirement opens the door for a Mike Lowell to Seattle trade.
- The Friarhood says it's time for the Padres to get serious about adding a middle-of-the-order bat.
- MLB Depth Charts checks in on prospects who were traded this past offseason.
- Bucs Prospects offers up a first hand scouting report on Florida Gulf Coast lefty Chris Sale, who's expected to be a high pick in next week's draft.
- Examiner wonders if the White Sox should trade Mark Buehrle.
- Meanwhile, Midwest Sports Fan suggests the ChiSox could be in for a turn around this month.
- More Hardball offer up a one-third mark of the season All-Star Team.
- Feeling Dodger Blue wonders if John Ely is the National League's second best rookie.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
2010 Draft Prospect: Chris Sale
Major League Baseball's amateur draft will be held from June 7th-9th, so we're going to introduce you to some of the top players available between now and then.
Every draft class offers players with questions about their future role. Sometimes it's a position player who might have to move from an up-the-middle spot to a corner, other times it's a starting pitcher who might become a reliever. Perhaps the biggest question mark in this year's draft class is Florida Gulf Coast lefthander Chris Sale, who some project to be a starter while others see a future in the bullpen.
As you can imagine, opinions on the 6-foot-6, 175 lb. lefty diverge greatly. Baseball America ranked him as the fifth best prospect in the draft while ESPN's Keith Law had him 47th (sub. req'd for both links). MLB.com's Draft Report says Sale gets lots of sink on his 92 mph fastball, plus a curveball that's a "potential wipeout pitch to left-handed hitters." He also sports a good changeup and strong control, throwing from a low-arm slot reminiscent of Randy Johnson. The MLB.com link offers video.
Sale spent the spring annihilating weak competition in the Atlantic Sun Conference, going 11-0 with a 2.01 ERA and a 146/14 K/BB ratio in 103 innings. He burst onto the scene in the prestigious Cape Cod League last summer, leading the circuit with four wins and 57 strikeouts. That performance led to Baseball America naming him the league's top prospect (sub. req'd), ahead of several other players expected to go in the first round both this year and next.
Big college lefties are very sought after come draft day, and Baseball America's Jim Callis projected the Indians to select Sale with the fifth overall pick in his latest mock draft (sub. req'd). He will almost assuredly be selected by a team that adheres to MLB's bonus recommendations.
Two New Mock Drafts
Baseball's amateur draft is just 12 days away. The latest links:
- AOL FanHouse's Frankie Piliere takes a second pass at a mock draft for the first round. This time he has the Royals taking Ole Miss lefty Drew Pomeranz at #4. Pomeranz is pitching in the SEC Tournament today.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo projects the top 20, with Florida Gulf Coast lefty Chris Sale going to the Royals.
- Mayo also has an article profiling the draft's top outfielders, with video for each.
- ESPN.com's Keith Law posted his most recent mock draft yesterday.